Ice in July
by PFTones3482
Summary: So, new to writing DP fanfiction, but no stranger to reading it! This idea was from a plot bunny, the author of which mysteriusly vanished...Maddie goes out for a walk on a really hot summer day, and she see's something that is pretty astounding...ice. In mid air.


**This was originally someone's plot bunny, but when I went back to find them and ask if I could write and post this story, I couldn't find them. Since I already had it written, I decided to post it anyway. Don't know what happened to the other author, but the idea was theirs, I just wrote it (and expanded it a little)**

**Sort of my first time writing Danny Phantom…there was this Phineas and Ferb thing, but….**

**I don't own Danny Phantom! And that other author owns the idea! Still don't know who they are, but they will hopefully recognize this story when they read it!**

**So read it! (And don't kill me!)**

* * *

Maddie Fenton sighed and pulled her shoes on, wiping her forehead with one hand.

"Geez, it's sweltering," she muttered.

She glanced at her usual blue outfit in the mirror, and after a moment's pause, ripped the sticky clothing off of her body.

She sighed in relief and pulled on a tank top and a pair of khaki shorts, completing the outfit with a pair of sandals. Though cooler, the ghost hunter was still seriously hot.

Maddie shook her head, pulled her short hair into a ponytail and grabbed a towel from the bathroom.

"Jack!" she called as she headed for the front door, "I'm heading to the park to cool off!"

"Have fun!" was the absentminded response that came from the lab. Maddie rolled her eyes and stepped out of Fenton Works, shutting the door behind her.

The sun beat down on the town relentlessly, causing waves of heat to roll off cars, sidewalks, and anything else within its reach. People were out on the sidewalk tanning in practically nothing, kids were splashing in sprinklers and just about every ice cream stand was packed.

Maddie skirted around a hose and turned onto the path, heading inside the park. She blinked in surprise.

It was noticeably cooler here, but the woman couldn't figure out why. She wasn't even under the trees or near the lake yet, the two coolest places in the area.

She looked around, swiveling her head from side to side as she walked, trying to figure out what was going on. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until a piece of ice fell from the air and shattered at her feet.

Maddie jumped and leaned over, plucking the frozen water from the ground. It was already beginning to melt in her hand, and she let the cold flow through her fingers before looking up.

A long trail of glittering ice wound through the sky, held up by absolutely nothing.

Maddie felt her jaw drop as she looked at the amazing sight before her. The ice glittered from the sun, and steam rose from its surface as the sun beat down on it.

She followed it for a few minutes, wondering where it ended. She didn't think that it was there for any particular reason until a figure zoomed across the surface.

Maddie stopped in her tracks, allowing herself to gape some more as "town hero" Danny Phantom began leaping and twirling along the ice with little effort.

She immediately went for the ecto-gun in her pocket and she mentally cursed when she remembered that she didn't have it. So instead of shooting Phantom, she craned her neck upwards and watched.

He slid along the ice, his eyes closed and the wind rustling his snow white hair. A moment later, he snapped his eyes open and threw his hands up in front of him.

Ice shot from his palms, recoating the ice already in the sky and making it stronger. He slid down it and disappeared from Maddie's sight.

The woman paused, and then sat down under a tree nearby, positive that the kid would come back.

He did, but this time he wasn't alone.

Maddie's jaw dropped once more as she spotted Sam, _Danny's _friend, skating along behind the ghost boy. He was skating backwards and re-enforcing the ice here and there, catching the girl if she wobbled or stumbled at all.

About halfway across, Phantom flew up and over the girl, turning her around carefully and saying something that Maddie couldn't hear.

Sam laughed and grabbed Phantom's hands with hers and they skated away, once more out of Maddie's sight.

When the ghost came back the next time, he had Tucker in tow, and Maddie shook her head. What was with this kid? Didn't he have his own friend's? That _weren't_ human?

She watched as the two goofed off in mid-air, reminding her of Danny and Tucker and how they acted when they were playing video games or something.

She paused and frowned, tapping her finger to her chin as the two skated off. Come to think of it, Phantom had been acting towards Sam how Danny did. And the same thing had happened with Tucker.

Maddie shook away the uneasy feeling growing in her chest and she settled back against the tree, enjoying the shade and the tickle of the grass under her legs, watching for Phantom and his new skater buddy the next time they came out.

It wasn't really who she had expected.

Danny Phantom came in flying, about eye height with Jazz Fenton.

Maddie darted to her feet, completely in shock, and the sudden movement made both her daughter and Phantom look over. Jazz stumbled to a halt, Phantom grabbing her arm to steady her.

"Mom! What are you doing here?" the teen cried, stumbling over her words.

She glanced at the ghost boy nervously, but his gaze remained locked on Maddie.

"I went for a walk to try to cool off. Jazz, what on earth are you doing with the ghost boy?" she yelled, crossing her arms in front of her.

Jazz gulped. "He was just offering air-ice-skating to anyone who wanted to try it. It looked like fun, and it's so hot out-"

"Jasmine Fenton, you get down here this instant," Maddie said angrily.

Jazz glanced at the ghost boy and Phantom grabbed her under the arms and lowered her to the ground.

As soon as Jazz's feet were firmly on the ground, Maddie grabbed her arm and yanked her away from Phantom. The ghost looked a little hurt, but Maddie shook that thought off the second she thought it.

Maddie wiped a drop of sweat from her brow and glared at Phantom. "Jazz, go home. Now."

Jazz opened her mouth to protest, but Phantom sent her an almost invisible shake of the head. Jazz sighed, glanced longingly at the ice trail in the sky, and turned to go home.

Maddie watched until she was out of sight and then turned back to Phantom, surprised that he hadn't flown off yet.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" the woman said sternly, putting her hands on her hips and trying to ignore the trickle of sweat crawling down her back.

Phantom glanced up. "I was just cooling off," he said softly.

Maddie blinked in surprise, and then narrowed her eyes. "Ghosts can't feel hot and cold," she protested.

Phantom chuckled softly. "Boy, you don't know much about me, huh?"

Maddie pursed her lips. "You're right."

Phantoms head flew up, his white hair swinging out of his eyes. "Huh?"

Maddie shook her head. "You're right. I don't know a lot about you. Like, why did you offer the skating to other people too?"

Phantom looked at her in bewilderment. "Because it's sweltering out and ice is cold?"

Maddie smiled faintly and glanced at the ice bridge. The edges were dripping into the grass below, sizzling when they managed to hit the concrete nearly ten feet away. The drops were only able to do that when the wind blew, which wasn't often.

With a start, Maddie realized that Phantom had probably made it that way on purpose, so that if someone fell, they wouldn't hit solid concrete.

She turned back to him, and he was still studying her with those bright green eyes. A small smile lit up his face.

"Do you skate?" he said softly.

Maddie realized what he was asking, and her first reaction was to snarl no. But when she met the boy's eyes, he was watching her pleadingly, almost like Danny had when he was younger and wanted ice cream.

Maddie sighed. "Fine. But try anything, and you're going to be ripped apart-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, molecule by molecule," Phantom said, holding his hands up. "I know."

Maddie glanced up at the ice, and then back down at Phantom, who was holding his hand out. She bit her lip, and against better judgment, grabbed it.

She was startled so much by the fact that his hand was _warm _that she didn't even notice when she was standing on the ice.

She glanced down and gasped, stumbling on the slippery ice. A strong hand wrapped around her bicep and she glanced over at Phantom with a look that would make a grown man cower. Phantom merely smiled and released Maddie from his grip.

"Sorry," he murmured.

He lifted his feet off of the ice and hovered in front of Maddie for a moment before taking off in the opposite direction. Maddie spun in surprise and, amazingly, managed to stay on her feet, if only for the moment.

"Phantom!" she called nervously as her feet slid on the glassy surface.

The boy turned and cocked his head at her, beckoning her forward. Maddie took a hesitant step and immediately fell to her bottom, sliding towards the edge of the ice slide. She yelped as the ice dropped from under her and she began falling towards the ground.

Arms suddenly encircled her waist and shoulders and she stopped falling, instead rising up. Maddie looked up into Phantoms face, and for a moment, when he wasn't so guarded, she was able to read it.

He looked concerned. Maddie scoffed at the idea, but then paused. He _had _saved her, and he didn't need to. He could have just let her fall. She would have been out of ghost fighting for a few weeks, or months, at most.

She blinked in surprise and turned her attention back to Phantom as he settled down on the grass. Maybe he wasn't too evil…

Phantom glanced up and caught Maddie looking at him. "What?" he asked, taking a slight step back.

Maddie shook her head and stepped towards him. Phantom stayed frozen in place, and the only sign that he was scared was the small dilation of his pupils in his eyes. Maddie slowly put a hand to the ghosts face and her eyes widened in surprise.

She jerked her hand away and clasped her fingers in her other hand, staring at Phantom in bewilderment. "You're warm."

Phantom chuckled. "Well, yeah, it's like ninety five degrees out here."

Maddie shook her head in confusion, sitting down on the grass. "But you're a ghost."

Phantom smiled. "Like I said, you don't know everything about me."

Maddie frowned and fingered the grass she was sitting on, twisting the strands between her fingers. "Would you tell me?"

She heard a slight intake of breath and she glanced up. Phantom honestly looked startled, and his muscles had gone stiff. "What?"

Maddie stood back up and dusted her shorts off. She sighed, knowing that she was going to regret what she was about to do. "If I get my husband to stop hunting you, and I stop too, will you tell me more about ghosts?"

A slow smile curved its way onto Phantom's face and he turned back towards Maddie. "No."

Maddie was startled, and she scowled. "Excuse me?"

Phantom shook his head. "You heard me. I'd love to, but all you need to do to learn about them is watch them. Most of the time, it's really easy to pick out the good from the bad."

Maddie heard the slight sarcasm dripping from Phantom's voice, and she winced. It wasn't a secret that she and Jack hated Phantom, but she had never contemplated how the ghost boy himself felt about that.

Maddie nodded. "Fine. I'll stop shooting at you. Go get back to the ice slide before it melts."

Phantom looked at her in surprise. "Really?"

Maddie shrugged. "When I wasn't falling off, it was nice. But you should add a little something."

Phantom smiled and flew off without another word. Maddie watched him go, and then walked towards the pond.

* * *

An hour later, she was headed back the way she came. A cold drop of water landed on her head and she looked up. Her smile widened. Phantom had definitely improved the ice.

A large ice castle now suspended itself in mid-air, and slides came from just about every window. There was even a dragon poking its head out. Maddie glanced around. Strangely, no one was playing on the castle, or the slides.

Laughter above her made her rethink that statement and she looked up. Phantom had Tucker and Sam around the waists, and as Maddie watched, he dropped each of them onto a slide before jumping after them.

She shook her head at the whooping sound that came from inside the castle. A moment later, a loud thump made her turn around.

Phantom picked himself off of the grass and rubbed his head, laughing hysterically. He glanced up at Maddie and smiled briefly before taking off again.

"You guys are so going to get it!" he yelled to Sam and Tucker. The two just laughed and skated away from the ghost, causing him to fall and get a mouthful of ice/snow in his face.

Maddie shook her head and continued on her way home, walking under the ice castle and bridge to catch the cold drips of water as it melted.

She walked back the way she came, passing the ice cream vendors once more and the areas where the hoses had been on.

All were off now, and everyone was headed to the park, presumably for the ice. Maddie smiled and stepped inside Fenton Works, slipping her sandals off inside the door. She headed up to Jazz's room and knocked on the door.

"Come in!"

Maddie stepped inside and Jazz looked up. "What?"

Maddie gave a small smile. "If you want to go hang out with Phantom on the ice, go for it."

Jazz's eyes widened. "What made you change your mind?" she asked, setting aside the book she had been reading.

Maddie smiled. "I took a spin for myself. He's not that bad."

Jazz grinned and kissed her mom on the cheek. "No, he's not. Thanks Mom!"

Maddie watched her leave and headed back to the living room. She grabbed a book and sat down with it.

* * *

Two or three hours later, the front door burst open and Danny rushed in with Sam, Tucker, and Jazz right behind him. All four were laughing and flushed. Cold radiated off of them and Maddie smiled. They must have been with Phantom.

She stood and placed the almost completed book on the couch. "Did you have fun?" she asked.

The kids jumped and Danny grinned. "Yeah, it was awesome!"

Maddie smiled. "Sam, Tucker, you can spend the night, if you'd like."

"Thanks, Mrs. Fenton," the two chorused.

The four headed for the stairs and Maddie noticed Danny rubbing his head. "Danny? What happened?"

Danny froze and turned to his mother. "I fell off the ice."

Maddie nodded slowly and Danny retreated up the last of the stairs after his friends and sister. Maddie sat back down and a vision flashed through her mind.

Phantom falling off of the ice and hitting his head in the same spot that Danny had just been rubbing.

Maddie shook her head and looked up the stairs after Danny. She started to rise from the spot on the couch, but something stopped her. She sank back into the cushions and picked up her book again, noting that she only had one chapter left.

That was a conversation with Danny that could wait. For now, Maddie just wanted to enjoy the summer.

* * *

**I figure, it's summer, so I might as well do this now.**

**Again, got this from a plot bunny thing, don't know where the author disappeared to, can't remember their name, and actually really got into writing this. **

**Let me know if I'm any good at writing Danny Phantom stories, OK? Like I said, this is sort of my first one, so….**

**R and R?**


End file.
